Plastic Surgery
by FemaleChauvinist
Summary: The vampire-bite scar on Dominic Black's neck has been bothering him more as he grows older, so he asks his Uncle Carlisle to remove it.


**Disclaimer:** While the attempt has been made to be medically accurate, some artistic license has been taken, and statements made by Carlisle are not to be regarded as authoritative.

Recognizable characters and plotlines are the property of Stephenie Meyer; all original characters and story © 2017 FemaleChauvinist.

 _Do not post without permission. Do not copy/print without including the above disclaimer in its entirety._

 **A/N: Read my story "Immortal Child" to find out how Dom got the vampire bite scar and was adopted by Jacob and Nessie (his older sister Winnie was born in my story "Edwina Sue). Barbie**

 _Fall 2036_

 _Winnie sixteen, Dom fifteen_

 **Dominic**

I loved soccer, but I didn't like undressing in the locker room afterward.

Not that I was a prude; I didn't mind undressing in front of the guys. It was my scar; I had been self-conscious about it since learning it was from a vampire bite that nearly killed me when I was three. My soccer jerseys just barely covered it, and only because I'd gotten Winnie to take a slight tuck in the neckband. I'd developed a system now; pulling the jersey off with a quick yank to get my head through the smaller neck hole, then draping a towel around my shoulders before anyone could see my scar. I would wait until I was the last one before going to take my shower.

But today, my plan had gone wrong. We'd had a good practice, and everyone was more rowdy than usual. Eric grabbed the towel from my shoulders, jumping up to stand on the bench and waving it over his head like a victory banner.

"Hey, Dom!" Pete exclaimed. "What's that mushroom growing on your shoulder?"

I flushed and clapped my hand over the scar. "It's nothing. Just a-a scar."

"Whoa-ho!" Pete laughed. He was about to taunt me further when Coach Stevens' voice cut in. "Pete! Eric! Quit clowning around and get in the showers."

"Yes, sir." Eric jumped from the bench, tossing the towel in my direction.

When I had removed the towel from my face, Coach Stevens was standing in front of me. "Dominic, do you mind if I have a look at that 'scar'?"

"Why is it suddenly everyone's business?" I asked defensively.

Coach Stevens frowned. "I'm concerned, Dom. Have your parents ever had a doctor look at it?"

I picked at a loop of the towel. "Yeah," I muttered; "it's fine. I've had it most of my life — my uncle's a doctor; he's seen it."

Coach Stevens sighed. "All right, Nick; I just wanted to be sure. You go on and get your shower now; you don't want to keep your sister waiting too long."

Winnie always did her homework on the picnic bench under the trees when I had soccer practice. When she saw me coming, she shoved her books into her backpack and walked with me to the car she and Dad had built from parts.

"You all right, Nick?" she questioned.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

She didn't press further. I liked that about Winnie; she didn't try to make you talk when you weren't ready yet.

I was silent on the ride home, absently fingering the scar through my shirt. It had been mostly flat when I was younger, but with each growth spurt it had grown more prominent. The silver scar itself never grew or changed; the skin around it was stretched tight and puckered, that in the middle of the bite raised up until it did resemble some kind of grotesque fungal growth. Little wonder Coach Stevens thought the worst about it, I thought bitterly. Cancer; I knew that was what had been in his mind, and he hadn't really been reassured by my words. I hoped he wasn't planning to call my parents; that would be beyond embarrassing.

"Hey, Win, drop me at Aunt Esme's, will you?" I asked suddenly.

She glanced at me, surprised, but drove past the turnoff for our house without questioning. "Want me to pick you up later?" she asked, pulling to a stop in front of Uncle Carlisle and Aunt Esme's big house.

"No; I'll get a lift home. Thanks, Win!" Slinging my backpack over one shoulder, I crossed the front porch and pushed the door open. It was never locked when someone was home; Winnie and I always went in without knocking.

"Dominic!" Aunt Esme smiled, coming to greet me. "This is a pleasant surprise. Doesn't Winnie want to stay?"

"Didn't ask her." I walked past her into the kitchen, dropping my backpack on one of the chairs and grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl on the table. "Whatcha doin'?"

"Oh, I was thinking of doing some stenciling on these cabinets…they need _something_."

I ate my apple in silence for a few minutes. "Uncle Carlisle home?" I asked offhandedly.

"Yes; he's up in his study." She looked at me with motherly concern. "You're not feeling sick, are you?"

"Nah, I'm all right." I finished my apple and tossed the core in the trash, then went to the sink to wash the sticky juice off my hands. "Guess I'll go upstairs; there's something I want to ask him." I grabbed my backpack off the chair and ran up the stairs, pausing at the doorway to my room to toss the backpack on the bed.

I went up the second flight of stairs to Uncle Carlisle's third-floor study, but stood outside the door, hesitating.

"Come on in, Dom," Uncle Carlisle called; blasted vampire hearing. Aunt Esme was probably gonna hear every word I said to him.

I pushed the door open slowly as Uncle Carlisle rose to set aside the book he had been reading. "You're not ill," he noted, "so what was it you wanted to talk to me about?"

I sighed, kicking the door shut and scuffing the carpet with my foot. Half absently, my hand rose to finger my scar. "I was wondering…if you could get rid of this scar for me." I said the last words in a rush.

"May I ask why?" he said quietly.

I shrugged. "It's just…weird. Pete saw it today, and he was kinda teasing me…" I looked away. "Coach Stevens is afraid it's…cancer," I whispered. I swallowed; I hadn't realized until I said the words how in the back of my mind, I was terribly afraid the coach was right. Oh, the scar itself wasn't, but the swollen flesh in the center of it…

"Dominic." Uncle Carlisle's voice pulled my head up, forcing me to look at him. "It's not cancer; I would have smelled it."

My shoulders slumped in relief.

Uncle Carlisle appeared thoughtful. "You know, Dom, I haven't actually seen that scar for a couple years now; you always wear shirts that cover it."

Wordlessly I turned away, pulling off my shirt before turning toward him again. His face remained expressionless as he took in the appearance of the scar, then gently probed it with his cold fingers. "Does it hurt at all?"

"Nah. Just pulls sometimes."

He nodded slowly. "All right; you can put your shirt back on. I'm sorry, Dominic; I never considered how a non-changing vampire-bite scar received at such a young age would appear as you grew; I can see why kids would tease you and your coach might be concerned."

I shrugged as I pulled my shirt back over my head. "'S not your fault."

"Be that as it may, the first thing I can do is call your coach and assure him that it's benign."

"Thanks," I muttered.

"As for removing it, first I'd want an x-ray to see how deep the vampire transformation is; if it's melded with the bone, I would have reservations about removing it. But in that case, I think I could still pare down the growth in the center…though I might have to do it more than once since you're still growing. And you do realize that even if I can remove the bite, the surgery itself will likely leave a scar."

I shrugged. "It's bound to look better than what I've got now." And Uncle Carlisle was the best surgeon around; I bet when it healed the scar would hardly even be visible.

Uncle Carlisle sighed. "I can't promise anything, Dom; not until I talk to your parents."

"They'll agree," I said quickly.

"Probably," Uncle Carlisle admitted, "but I'm not going to go against their wishes if they don't. Why don't you stay here for supper, and then I'll drive you home and talk things over."

"Okay," I agreed. "You got time to help me with my science homework?"

He chuckled. "Sure."

 **oOo**

 **Carlisle**

It was my fault, I silently berated myself as I drove Dominic home after supper. Because my enhanced senses would be sure to alert me to any problem, I hadn't bothered to give Winnie or Dom yearly checkups. If I had, I would have noticed how prominent Dom's scar was getting; perhaps suggested surgery myself.

I suspected now that he had been self-conscious about it for some time now; when was the last time I had actually seen him with his shirt off? And he rubbed it sometimes, but I had taken that for a nervous habit.

Edward hadn't mentioned anything, but I really had no idea how good Dom might be at blocking his thoughts.

I pulled into the driveway and walked up to the door with Dom, a hand on his shoulder.

I could sense his nervousness as he pushed the front door open. "Mom? Dad? I'm home."

Jacob stepped forward. "Dominic. You know you aren't supposed to go to Carlisle and Esme's without asking permission."

He shrank back slightly against me.

"Let it go this time, Jake," I said quietly. "I actually came over to talk to you and Nessie."

"Sure," Jacob said slowly. "Go to your room, Dominic. Ness?"

I squeezed Dom's shoulder slightly as he left.

"Have a seat, Doc," Jacob told me as Nessie joined us.

"Papa?" she asked anxiously. "He's not sick, is he?"

I smiled slightly; she only called me Papa now when she was worried or otherwise emotional. "No," I assured her. "But he came asking me about removing that vampire-bite scar."

"Removing it?" Jacob questioned.

"Yes; apparently he's been teased about it, and I think he was self-conscious, anyway."

"But it's not that obvious, is it? To human eyes, I mean."

"You haven't seen it recently either, then. He showed it to me this afternoon, Jake…it's quite prominent."

"More so than it used to be?"

"Yes. The bite has remained exactly the same for twelve years while the rest of him grew and changed. Quite frankly, I don't blame him for wanting it removed."

"And you could…do that?"

"Well, I would imagine so. I told Dom I'd want an x-ray first, to be sure the scar isn't melded to the bone."

Jake's eyes narrowed. "So you'd just take him into the hospital and let a tech x-ray a _vampire bite_?"

I chuckled. "Of course not. If I do the surgery, it will be at home with Edward as anesthesiologist and assistant; I can get an x-ray machine as easily as any other equipment."

Jake sighed. "You mind if we talk about this, Doc?"

"Not at all. Just don't keep Dom wondering too long; I think it's been bothering him far more than he let on."

 **oOo**

 **Dominic**

I was flopped on my stomach on my bed, playing the handheld video game Uncle Emmett had given me for my last birthday. I had made it up to level three and was trying unsuccessfully to make level four when there was a knock on the door.

"Dominic? Can we come in?"

"Sure, Dad." I tossed the game aside and sat up, worming back until I could lean against the headboard. Mom sat at the foot of my bed, while Dad pulled my desk chair out and sat on it sideways. I hated when they both came to talk to me at once; made me feel like they were ganging up on me. I caught myself fingering my scar and yanked my hand away as if it had burned me.

"Dom…Doc says that scar has been bothering you?"

"Yeah."

"Why didn't you tell us, Nicky?" Mom asked.

I shrugged. "It's no big deal." _Nicky_. I didn't mind having two names — three, if you counted when people used my full name — but I hated that Mom still called me Nicky sometimes.

"Doc said you asked if he could remove it," Dad said quietly.

"Yeah," I admitted slowly. I wished now that I'd told Uncle Carlisle to tell me their decision.

"Is that still what you want, Nicky?"

"Mom. It's _Nick_ , not Nicky."

Mom bit her lip, and Dad reached out to put a hand on her knee. "Dominic. Watch your tone with your mother."

"Sorry," I muttered, looking away. It gave me the creeps when his voice sounded like that; it was as if he was trying to use alpha control on me. Only it didn't work, because I was adopted.

"So…you do still want it removed."

"Yeah…if you'll let me."

Dad sighed. "With Doc doing the surgery, any risks will be minimal; if he thinks it's feasible, I suppose I have to say yes."

I found my lip suddenly trembling. "Thanks, Dad."

 **oOo**

I was in my room, packing my things in a small overnight bag. I didn't need to pack much; I had duplicates of almost everything in my room at the big house, anyway.

Uncle Carlisle had x-rayed my shoulder, and determined that while the scar was fairly deep and radiated out in places, it didn't involve the bone. As a result, he had agreed to do the surgery. I would be staying at the big house tonight, so he and Uncle Edward could prep me for surgery first thing in the morning.

I was a little nervous, but not as much as I would have been if anyone but Uncle Carlisle was doing the surgery. Of course, he was the only doctor I'd ever seen for anything…unless you counted that time Uncle Edward had bandaged my split knuckles.

At a noise behind me, I turned; my door swung open and Winnie slipped into the room.

"Well, come right in without knocking, why doncha?"

She smiled slightly and moved to sit on the floor against my bed, clasping her arms around her legs. "I wish I could cut the vampire out of me as easily as you can," she said soberly.

I glanced sharply at the door. "Don't let Mom hear you say that."

She rested her chin on her knees. "I'm not ashamed of having vampire ancestry…I just wish it didn't _show_. Most people…they might be proud of Irish or Italian heritage, but it doesn't really affect them."

"What about so many Irish being redheads?"

"People who _aren't_ Irish have red hair — look at Mom. My vampire traits…they can come only from being part vampire. And nobody has to hide the fact that they're a redhead. I can never be myself, Dom; not really."

"You can with our family," I pointed out.

"Yeah, but I don't really fit in." She laughed bitterly. "I'm a freak, Dommy. Not really a vampire, but not really human, either."

"So's Mom." It didn't bother me when Winnie still called me Dommy.

Winnie shook her head. "She thinks of herself as a vampire, Nick; you know she does."

"I guess. Look, Win, I really don't know what you want me to do."

She sighed, letting her head fall back against my bed. "I don't either," she admitted. "I just…needed to talk about it, and you're really the only one I can talk to."

"This isn't gonna change me, Win," I said, wondering if she thought I had been a "freak" like her and was now going to be just an average human.

"I know. Don't let Uncle Edward hear what I said."

"I'll do my best."

"Thanks. And thanks for listening." And she got up and left me alone to finish packing.

 **oOo**

I groggily opened my eyes after my surgery to find myself apparently alone in my room at the big house. They had had me in Uncle Carlisle's office for the operation, but I guess they thought I'd be more comfortable here afterward. I still had an IV line running to my hand.

I moved slowly and gently prodded my shoulder, wincing slightly.

Uncle Edward chuckled. "I wouldn't do that, if I were you."

I looked up, startled; out of nowhere he was standing learning in my doorway. Coming forward, he pressed his fingers lightly to my forehead to check my temperature.

"I'd ask about the pain," he commented, "but I can hear in your thoughts that it's not too bad right now."

I frowned slightly; he was acting as if he were the doctor here. And I knew he _was_ , but… "Where's Uncle Carlisle?"

Uncle Edward pulled out a penlight to check my eyes. "The hospital called; they needed him for emergency surgery."

"Guess I should be glad they didn't call while he was operating on me," I muttered, feeling strangely deserted and almost betrayed.

"You know he wouldn't have gone," Uncle Edward said seriously. "He puts family first…and he wouldn't drop one surgery to perform another one in any case. But with two medical degrees, I'm certainly qualified to handle post-op."

I shifted uncomfortably; I hadn't really meant to imply he wasn't.

Uncle Edward chuckled lightly again. "I'm not offended, Dominic," he assured me. "If nothing else, your thoughts still aren't fully coherent after the anesthesia." He finished his examination and turned to check something on the IV line.

"Uncle Edward…I'm kind of hungry."

Uncle Edward shook his head. "Sorry, Dom, I can't let you have anything more than ice chips for a few hours yet, just in case you have a reaction to the anesthesia. I think you're up to some visitors, though, and I know your parents are anxious to see you."

He vanished from the room, and soon Dad came in with his hand on Mom's shoulder.

"Oh, Nicky!" Mom whispered. She brushed her fingers across my cheek, letting me hear her thoughts of concern for me…it was really weird when she did that. I was _never_ gonna get used to living in a family of vampires; I almost wished they still tried to act human around me.

I dozed off and on that afternoon, and whenever I woke Uncle Edward was there to check my vitals. "You're doing well, Dom," he noted late in the afternoon. "I think I can let you have something light to eat now…and we can get rid of this IV line." He deftly removed it from my hand, taping a square of gauze over the spot.

"Are you allowed to be doing all this?"

He chuckled. "Legally? No; I don't have a license to practice medicine, and I only have my basic EMT certification. But everyone in this house knows I've been through medical school twice."

I shrugged; I knew they didn't always follow human rules to the letter. Anyway, he would have had his license if he looked a few years older.

"This is better than hospital food!" I grinned as I started on the tray Aunt Esme brought in. I had been in the hospital a couple times; Uncle Carlisle probably would have done the surgery there this time if the scar hadn't been from a vampire bite.

Uncle Carlisle came in as I was finishing my supper. "Sorry I had to leave you like that, Dom; I trust Edward took good care of you."

"Sure," I agreed as he sat beside the bed to perform his own examination.

"So you're feeling all right?"

"Sure."

"Do you need any more pain medication?"

"Nah; I think Uncle Edward's been monitoring it in my thoughts."

He chuckled. "To be honest, I often wish I could; perceived levels of pain are so subjective." He stood. "You get some rest now, Dominic."

"What do you think I've been doing all day?" I muttered.

He smiled, shaking his head. "I'll probably let you go home tomorrow if you don't develop any complications…but get some sleep now; your body needs it."

 **oOo**

Uncle Carlisle had scheduled my surgery for the beginning of the school break, so that when school started again I didn't have to miss any practice…as long as I was careful.

For the first time, I undressed in the locker room without feeling self-conscious. I tossed my shirt aside, not bothering to pull a towel over my shoulders.

"Hey, Dom!" Eric called. "What happened to the mushroom; someone eat it?"

"My Uncle Carlisle cut it off for me," I retorted.

Pete clapped me on the shoulder, and I winced; the spot was still a little sore.

"Eric! Pete! Leave Nick alone!" Coach Stevens turned toward me. "Good to see you got that taken care of, Dom."

"Yeah." Now, if only they would forget I ever had it…

The End

 **A/N:** **All right, not the best last sentence… I guess I can't get a really good ending everything time! Barbie**

 _I proofread all my stories at least once before posting, but if you see any mistakes I might have missed, please let me know!_

 _Please note that I have internet access only once a week, and may not have time to respond to all reviews/messages. If you have questions regarding my Twilight alternate history, check my profile first to see if they're answered there. Thanks for your understanding! Barbie_


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